Charlotte {Large Crochet Square Part 1}

I know many of you have been eagerly awaiting the pattern for my new large crochet square, and I am very excited to bring you Part 1 of 3. In this part I will show you how to make the central square. Next week I will show you how to make the triangles used to extend the square. The week after I will show you how to make the border. You can see photos of the completed Charlotte Square HERE.

I have decided to call this crochet square Charlotte, because I never did hear back from Counting Crows about using ‘Anna Begins’ as a name. I really, really wanted to use ‘Anna Begins’ (for so many reasons), but Charlotte was my second choice, and I think it suits the feel of this square.

Charlotte has been specifically designed for 67 Blankets for Mandela Day. The central flower is from one of John P Kelly’s patterns, ‘Mandala in Bloom’. I would like to thank John for allowing me to use a smaller version of his gorgeous flower. You can read more about Mandala in Bloom, and the rug I made from it, HERE. You can buy the pattern for Mandala in Bloom HERE.

Abbreviations

BP – Back post (insert your hook from back to front around the post of the indicated stitch and complete the stitch as normal)

Dc – Double crochet

Dc2tog – Double crochet 2 together (see Special Stitches)

FP – Front post (insert your hook from front to back around the post of the indicated stitch and complete the stitch as normal)

Hdc – Half-double crochet

Sc – Single crochet

Tr – Treble crochet

Sl st – Slip stitch

St/st’s – Stitch/stitches

() and * – Repeat instructions between parentheses and/or asterisks the amount of times specified

Special Stitches

Dc2tog – Yarn over and insert your hook into the indicated stitch. Yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2 loops. Yarn over and insert your hook into the next stitch. Yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through 2 loops. Yarn over and pull through all 3 loops on your hook.

Standing Stitches – Standing stitches are exactly the same as regular stitches, except that they are made ‘in air’, without being attached to a previous stitch. Start with a slip knot already on your hook and complete the stitch as normal. Here are some tutorials for the standing double crochet and standing single crochet to get you started.

Gauge

Your motif should measure 15 (6”) cm at the end of Round 13.

Size

Charlotte will be 42 cm (17”) when finished. At the end of Part 1, you should have a square that is 21 cm (8.5″). Please Note that personal gauge on the tester version varied dramatically depending on tension and yarn used!

Notes

The central Flower of this square is textured and raised slightly above the surface. When you have only made the flower, it will look like it bulges a lot (because of all those front post stitches), but as the square progresses this will become less noticeable. With use the flower will relax down even further, but it will always remain slightly raised above the surface of the square.

For the photos in this photo tutorial, I have used Scheepjes Stonewashed XL and a 5.5 mm crochet hook.

Instructions

Round 1 (Colour A)

Into a magic ring: Ch 5 (counts as tr + ch 1). (Tr, ch1) 11 times. Join to the 4th ch of the beginning ch-5 with a sl st.

Stitch Count: 12 tr’s and 12 ch-1 spaces

Round 2 (Colour A)

Sl st into the next ch-1 space. (Ch 1, sc) into the same ch-1 space. (Ch 4, sc in the next ch-1 space) 11 times. Ch 4. Join to the top of the first sc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Round 3 (Colour B)

Join your yarn by making a standing dc in any ch-4 space. Make 2 more dc’s in the same ch-4 space. (Ch 2, make 3 dc’s in the next ch-4 space) 11 times. Ch 2. Join to the top of the standing dc with a sl st.

Stitch Count: 36 dc’s and 12 ch-2 spaces

Round 4 (Colour B)

Ch 2 (doesn’t count as a stitch). Make 2 FPdc’s around the post of the same (first) dc from Round 3. Make 2 FPdc’s around each of the next 2 dc’s. Ch 1. (Make 2 FPdc’s around each of the next 3 dc’s. Ch 1) 11 times. Join to the top of the first FPdc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 72 FPdc’s and 12 ch-1 spaces

Round 5 (Colour A)

Join your yarn by making a standing dc into any ch-2 space from Round 3, working OVER the ch-1 space from Round 4 {indicated with an arrow in Photo 1 and illustrated in Photo 2}. You will find the ch-2 spaces between Petals. Dc in the same ch-2 space. (Ch 4. Make 2 dc’s in the next ch-2 space from Round 3, working OVER the ch-1 space from Round 4) 11 times. Ch 4. Join to the top of the standing dc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 24 dc’s and 12 ch-4 spaces

Round 6 (Colour B)

Work in front of the ch-4 spaces from Round 5 when making this round. You will need to dig a bit to locate the first FPdc of each 6-FPdc ‘group’.

Hint: Work in 12 lots of 6 stitches to make sure that you don’t accidentally skip any stitches. You should make 6 stitches into each Petal.

Join your yarn by making a standing FPdc around the first FPdc of any 6-FPdc group from Round 4. Make a FPdc around each of the remaining 71 st’s. Join to the top of the first FPdc with a sl st.

Stitch Count: 72 FPdc’s

Your Flower will be Ruffled at this point, don’t worry about it.

Round 7 (Colour B)

Ch 2 (doesn’t count as a st). (FPdc2tog, working into the first 2 FPdc’s of the Petal. FPdc in the next 2 st’s. FPdc2tog, working into the last 2 FPdc’s of the Petal. Ch 3) 12 times. Join to the first FPdc2tog with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 48 FPdc’s and 12 ch-3 spaces

Round 8 (Colour A)

In this round, you will be working between the 2 dc’s that form each 2-dc group in Round 5. You will work OVER the ch-3 space from Round 7 and the stitches of Round 6 (between Petals). You will need to apply quite a bit of tension to ensure your dc’s are ‘tight’.

Make a standing dc between any 2 dc’s from Round 5, remembering to work OVER Rounds 6 and 7. Make another dc between the same 2 dc’s {Photos 1 and 2}. (Ch 4. Make 2 dc’s between the next 2 dc’s from Round 5, remembering to work OVER Rounds 6 and 7) 11 times. Ch 4. Join to the first dc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 24 dc’s and 12 ch-4 spaces

Round 9 (Colour B)

Join your yarn by making a standing FPdc2tog around the first 2 st’s of any Petal from Round 7 (in other words, around the FPdc2tog and the first FPdc). FPdc2tog around the last 2 st’s of the Petal. Ch 4. (FPdc2tog twice into the next Petal of Round 7. Ch 4) 11 times. Join to the first FPdc2tog with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 24 FPdc’s and 12 ch-4 spaces

Round 10 (Colour A)

Join your yarn by making a standing dc between any 2 dc’s from Round 8, working OVER the ch-4 space from Round 9. Make 4 dc’s in the same space. (Ch 2 and make 5 dc’s between the next 2 dc’s from Round 8) 11 times. Ch 2. Join to the first dc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 60 dc’s and 12 ch-2 spaces

Round 11 (Colour B)

Join your yarn by making a FPdc2tog around the remaining 2 st’s of any Petal from Round 9. (Ch 6 and FPdc2tog around the 2 st’s of the next Petal from Round 9) 11 times. Ch 6. Join to the first FPdc2tog with a sl st. Fasten off and work away yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 12 FPdc2tog’s and 12 ch-6 spaces

At the end of this round, your flower will bulge quite a lot (see Notes at the start of the pattern). This will relax, but it won’t completely go away. The final flower will be raised slightly above the surface of the square.

Round 12 (Colour A)

In this round, you will work IN FRONT OF the ch-6 spaces from Round 11.

Join your yarn by making a standing hdc in the first dc of any 5-dc group from Round 10. Hdc in the same st. Sc in the next 3 st’s. Make 2 hdc’s in the next st, which will be the last dc of the 5-dc group {Photo 1}. FPdtr in the dc from Round 8 to the left of the next Petal (to the right, if you are left handed) – see Photos 2 and 3. FPdtr in the dc from Round 8 to the right of the same Petal (to the left, if you are left handed) – see Photos 4 and 5. You are essentially doubling back, and you will need to fold/turn your work to make it easier to get into that stitch.

*Make 2 hdc’s in the first dc of the next 5-dc group from Round 10. Sc in the next 3 st’s. Make 2 hdc’s in the next st. FPdtr in the dc from Round 8 to the left of the next Petal (to the right, if you are left handed). FPdtr in the dc from Round 8 to the right of the same Petal (to the left, if you are left handed).* Repeat from * to * 10 more times. Join to the first hdc with a sl st.

Stitch Count: 108 st’s {36 sc’s, 48 hdc’s, and 24 FPdtr’s}

Round 13 (Colour A)

Ch 1 and sc in the same st as the sl st join, which will be the hdc after 2 FPdtr’s. Sc in the next 2 s t’s. (Make 2 sc’s in the next st, which should be the central of the 3 sc’s from the previous round. Mark the second sc if you are going to have trouble finding it in the next round. Sc in the next 8 st’s) 11 times. Make 2 sc’s in the next st. Sc in the last 5 st’s. Join to the first sc with a sl st.

Stitch Count: 120 sc’s

Round 14 (Colour A)

Ch 1 and sc in the same st as the sl st join. Sc in the next 4 st’s. You should now have 5 sc’s.

*Hdc in the next st. Dc in the next 2 st’s. Tr in the next 2 st’s. Ch 4, skip the next 4 st’s and sl st in the next st, which should be the second (marked) sc of the increase from the previous round. Ch 13 and sl st in the same st to form a loop. Ch 4 and skip the next 4 st’s. Tr in the next 2 st’s. Dc in the next 2 st’s. Hdc in the next st. Sc in the next 11 st’s. The first and last sc’s should fall in the second (marked) sc of the increase from the previous round.*

Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last 5 sc’s on the last repeat (because you’ve already made them at the start of this round). Join to the first sc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Have a look at your work before continuing. The Flowers formed by the ch-4 and ch-13 loops are your corners. Each of them should fall between 2 Petals. If they don’t, you’ll need to check your stitches to see where you have gone wrong.

Round 15 (Colour A)

Join your yarn by making a standing hdc in any ch-13 space around. Try to make this stitch close to the middle of the ch-13 space. Into the same ch-13 space: (3 sc, ch 2, 3 sc, hdc). This is your first corner made. Move these stitches up so that they fall over the center of the ch-13 space. You can adjust them later if it looks a bit wonky now.

*Ch 3. Sc in each of the 21 st’s across. Ch 3. Into the next ch-13 space: (hdc, 3 sc, ch 2, 3 sc, hdc).* Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat. Join to the first hdc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Round 16 (Colour B)

Join your yarn by making a standing sc in any ch-2 corner space. (Ch 2, sc) in the same space. This is your first corner made. *Sc in the next 4 st’s. Make 3 sc’s in the next ch-3 space. Sc in the next 21 st’s. Make 3 sc’s in the next ch-3 space. Sc in the last 4 st’s. Don’t accidentally skip the hdc right after the ch-3 space. Into the next ch-2 corner space: (sc, ch 2, sc).* Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat. Join to the first sc with a sl st.

Stitch Counts: 148 sc’s and 4 ch-2 corner spaces {37 sc’s per side}

Round 17 (Colour B)

Sl st into the ch-2 corner space. Ch 4 (counts as hdc and ch-2). Hdc in the same space. This is your first corner made.

*Skip the first (hidden) stitch. Hdc in each of the remaining 36 st’s. (Hdc, ch 2, hdc) in the next ch-2 corner space.* Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat. Join to the second ch of the initial ch-4 with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Count: 152 hdc’s and 4 ch-2 corner spaces {38 hdc’s per side}

Round 18 (Colour A)

Join your yarn by making a standing hdc in any ch-2 corner space. (Hdc, ch 2, 2 hdc) in the same space. This is your first corner made.

*BPdc in each of the 38 st’s across. (2 hdc, ch 2, 2 hdc) in the next ch-2 corner space.* Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat. Join to the first hdc with a sl st. Fasten off and work away your yarn ends.

Stitch Counts

Total: 168 st’s and 4 ch-2 corner spaces {16 hdc’s and 152 BPdc’s}

Per Side: 42 st’s per side {4 hdc’s and 38 BPdc’s}

And there you have it. One central square made! Remember to check back next week if you would like to continue growing this square.

Comments

Hi, I just wanted to comment on a few things. Firstly thank you so much for this pattern it is an absolute joy to make and has actually turned into a passion for me. I have only been crocheting for a few years and I love the different stitches and techniques used. Secondly I really wanted to comment on the video tutorial for part 1 from Its All In A Nut Shell…Wow she is a wonderful teacher and the video was a great tool when I got a little lost in rounds 9 & 10. Thank you to you all for helping me experience another way to open up my creative horizons.

Hi Amanda. Thank you for your love, enthusiastic comment. I am so pleased that you have enjoyed Charlotte so much. Esther is indeed a wonderful teacher. May you continue thriving in this new-found passion x

Hi there! This is just so beautiful! I am stuck on row 14! I’ve torn this out 4 times now and cannot figure out what is going on? I get all the way to the eand each time and run out of stitches? Each time I go back 1-3 rows and this last time I started completely over from scratch and still ended up exactly the same? Do you have any ideas?

Hi Kristi. I am sorry to hear that you are finding Row 14 tricky. Can you use the Contact Me tab to send me an email? We can then open a channel of conversation that will allow us to exchange photos and better trouble-shoot this.

How would I join my squares and do a border, if I stop after part one. My squares with 4 ply yarn are measuring 12.5 inches. I’m working on my 3rd square ( of part 1) I’m afraid if I go to part 2 they will get way TOO big

Hi Dedri. I trust that you are well. Thank you for this pattern. It’s so pretty that I just had to do it. I’m an Amigurumi girl so it must be something really special to get me to do anything else.

I am stuck on Round 12 though. What is DTR in FPdtr? Double treble? How on earth is that done?

Thank you once again for this. I sit in my husband’s isolation ward and crochet while he battles his leukemia and I wanted quick projects because I want to make many different things to keep him interested and he enjoys watching me.

Hi Berney. A double treble is yarn over 3 times. You might find this video useful. Crochet can be so soothing in difficult times. I hope your husband is restful and pain-free. I work with cancer in my ‘real’ job and it is a terrifying disease. My thoughts go with you.

Hi Dina. I am a radiotherapist and work with cancer daily. I am pleased that you turned your attention to something positive in this time and hope that it helped you deal with what must have been such a scary time. Your photos are lovely… every single one of them x

I cannot wait to get started on this – tomorrow morning is the plan… I have searched for 2 months and this is the one I have chosen. Thank you for the beautiful creation and pattern that is not completely daunting….

This is absolutely wonderful. Your instructions and illustrated pictures are so easy to follow. I thank you especially for including “left handed” instructions for folks like me. I have just finished Part 1 using yarns I had around the house. Tomorrow—Part 2 begins. What a beautiful afghan. It has so many different possibilities. Thank you for your creativity and for sharing all this. My mind is going abuzz with all the different colors and how they can be mixed/matched.

I appreciate how you write directions! With most patterns, I understand the terminology but doubt whether I’m doing it correctly. So, thank you for being detailed in your written directions and using pictures, it makes this a fun project instead of a stressful one!

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